only wants to eat kale

TanyaTortoiseGal

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I'm new to owning a tortoise, but have had many other types of reptiles in my life. We almost ran a Sulcata Hatchling over yesterday, looked like a small rock in the road until my husband saw it move! He swerved and we went back an picked "him"up...I actually have been wanting one for a year now so it worked out great! He is very healthy and active.
But only wants to eat kale when I make him a salad and that's what I'm not sure about what to do? I give him fresh pulled Bermuda, no pesticides, it grows like crazy where we are, some kale, some bok choy leaves, cabbage, cilantro, I put some dried rose petals in today to see if that would entice him...but all he wants is the kale...let me know if I should be trying something else also, we have cactus without thorns all over our yard.
He is having well formed frequent bowl movements and pee with the egg looking stuff. I just want to do all the correct things because he is such a little love, he actually wanted to be picked up today and walked around my chest for a while and then he fell asleep for 2 hrs. in my hands, I thought that was interesting.

Thank you for any and all suggestions!
 

Toddrickfl1

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I'm new to owning a tortoise, but have had many other types of reptiles in my life. We almost ran a Sulcata Hatchling over yesterday, looked like a small rock in the road until my husband saw it move! He swerved and we went back an picked "him"up...I actually have been wanting one for a year now so it worked out great! He is very healthy and active.
But only wants to eat kale when I make him a salad and that's what I'm not sure about what to do? I give him fresh pulled Bermuda, no pesticides, it grows like crazy where we are, some kale, some bok choy leaves, cabbage, cilantro, I put some dried rose petals in today to see if that would entice him...but all he wants is the kale...let me know if I should be trying something else also, we have cactus without thorns all over our yard.
He is having well formed frequent bowl movements and pee with the egg looking stuff. I just want to do all the correct things because he is such a little love, he actually wanted to be picked up today and walked around my chest for a while and then he fell asleep for 2 hrs. in my hands, I thought that was interesting.

Thank you for any and all suggestions!
Chances are you found a Desert Tortoise which is native to AZ and not a Sulcata.
 

Tom

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Chances are you found a Desert Tortoise which is native to AZ and not a Sulcata.
Since there are so many people breeding sulcatas in AZ, I didn't give this a second thought, but you might be right. They do look pretty similar as babies. Good call.
 

TanyaTortoiseGal

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TanyaTortoiseGal

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The above pictures are of Sammy my Sulcata when I found her as a hatchling in the middle of the road, when she was still very dirty, and the newer ones that you can tell she’s very clean and turning out to be very beautiful now. “Sulcata” is what I have been told over and over and over again that she or he is. Not a wild desert tortoise, but a hatchling Sulcata that must’ve gotten out of somebody’s yard and onto the street. Sammy is doing well, eating a lot better since my first post about only eating kale she or he is eating lots of baby greens and I don’t even have to put the kale in any longer… I just slowly started putting more baby greens chopped up fine and taking more kale out. Now my question is I have a bermuda lawn, it’s natural started growing in on its own, but my husband and I did use Scotts brand bermuda mix with seed encapsulated growering mix that we put in the bare areas last spring, so I don’t know if it’s safe to allow Sammy to graze on it or not? I appreciate everybody’s help and guidance, those of you that have responded to me in my first post about finding Sammy in the street and what I needed to do to feed Sammy properly. I some Sammy once a day and that seems to be when she really likes to do her eggy looking pee and since she’s been eating so much the last few days a lot of very well formed stool also, I have found other stool in the pen that I clean out also.Thank you everybody!
 
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TanyaTortoiseGal

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Since there are so many people breeding sulcatas in AZ, I didn't give this a second thought, but you might be right. They do look pretty similar as babies. Good call.
Thank you for your input, but I’ve been told multiple times that it definitely is a Sulcata and these pictures help explain the differences between a baby Sulcata and a baby desert tortoise. I’ve taken my tortoise to many reptile shops in the valley to help identify as well as posted pictures here on the forum and on the Arizona tortoise forum to make sure that I had a Sulcata and not a desert tortoise, if it would’ve been a desert tortoiseI would have contacted our fish and game (They actually have a program in Arizona where are they rehome the found desert tortoises every year because there’s too many of them that cannot be turned back out into the wild), to see what they would have wanted to do with the tortoise. Some people would’ve said leave it in the street which I’ve heard many times, I’m sorry I think that’s cruel especially in a residential area where there’s block walls and the tortoise would have had nowhere to go other than get ran over. Thank you again for your input. :)
 

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TanyaTortoiseGal

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And protected. Post a photo for a 100% identification.

*buys Yvonne another C*ke*
Pictures attached below as well as information on how to tell the difference between the two tortoises below and I’ve made sure that I’ve taken the tortoise to have it identified by qualified reptile individuals.
 

Toddrickfl1

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Please read the post below with the pictures of how to tell how a hatchling is a desert tortoise versus a Sulcata tortoise.
I know how to tell the difference. I just thought it was more likely you found a native species than a non native one. That's definitely a Sulcata.
 

Tom

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The above pictures are of Sammy my Sulcata when I found her as a hatchling in the middle of the road, when she was still very dirty, and the newer ones that you can tell she’s very clean and turning out to be very beautiful now. “Sulcata” is what I have been told over and over and over again that she or he is. Not a wild desert tortoise, but a hatchling Sulcata that must’ve gotten out of somebody’s yard and onto the street. Sammy is doing well, eating a lot better since my first post about only eating kale she or he is eating lots of baby greens and I don’t even have to put the kale in any longer… I just slowly started putting more baby greens chopped up fine and taking more kale out. Now my question is I have a bermuda lawn, it’s natural started growing in on its own, but my husband and I did use Scotts brand bermuda mix with seed encapsulated growering mix that we put in the bare areas last spring, so I don’t know if it’s safe to allow Sammy to graze on it or not? I appreciate everybody’s help and guidance, those of you that have responded to me in my first post about finding Sammy in the street and what I needed to do to feed Sammy properly. I some Sammy once a day and that seems to be when she really likes to do her eggy looking pee and since she’s been eating so much the last few days a lot of very well formed stool also, I have found other stool in the pen that I clean out also.Thank you everybody!
Now that we've seen it, its definitely a sulcata. Here is the care info:

The above info will differ from what you've heard from pets stores and other sources, because all of us have been keeping them all wrong for decades. Its a long story, but if you want your baby to survive and thrive, follow the care sheet.

I wouldn't let my tortoise graze on grass grown from that type of seed. Buy seed from a feed store that sells grazing mixes for pasture animals without all the chemicals and additives.

Most of us do weights in grams. You want steady growth, and you'll know you are "out of the woods" when the tortoise reaches and passes 50 grams.
 

TanyaTortoiseGal

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Sep 22, 2021
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Location (City and/or State)
Arizona
Now that we've seen it, its definitely a sulcata. Here is the care info:

The above info will differ from what you've heard from pets stores and other sources, because all of us have been keeping them all wrong for decades. Its a long story, but if you want your baby to survive and thrive, follow the care sheet.

I wouldn't let my tortoise graze on grass grown from that type of seed. Buy seed from a feed store that sells grazing mixes for pasture animals without all the chemicals and additives.

Most of us do weights in grams. You want steady growth, and you'll know you are "out of the woods" when the tortoise reaches and passes 50 grams.
Somebody moved my original post, which I guess I posted in a different area, to its own area, so you’ll have to forgive me I didn’t realize the original pictures attached to the original post from last week where not moved with my original questions in this post. The “dirty” pics were from when I originally found the hatchling in the street last Tuesday, and the “clean” pictures are from today, After soaking the hatchling every day since then. Thank you
 

Tom

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Somebody moved my original post, which I guess I posted in a different area, to its own area, so you’ll have to forgive me I didn’t realize the original pictures attached to the original post from last week where not moved with my original questions in this post. The “dirty” pics were from when I originally found the hatchling in the street last Tuesday, and the “clean” pictures are from today, After soaking the hatchling every day since then. Thank you
That is definitely a ground hatched baby. Its lucky to be alive with how hot and dry it is there. Hydration will be crucial to getting it to survive.
 
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